Skeet shooters

[dobber]

Looking for some advice/options for guns for skeet shooting, figure since golf will never be an option for me i am starting to look at some guns for skeet shooting. Wanting a good solid gun that will withstand thousands of rounds, knowing that price will also be a factor.
The Italian guns seem to be better for lasting. And without the wife knowing i am looking at spending no more than $5k and if she is looking way under $500

 

[Deep River]

Or buy ten $500 guns?

 

[Papa_Smurf]

If it starts with a "B" you will likely be ok in the wear department.

Dont buy a field weight gun though. You aren't hiking miles chasing birds. You want weight to help with the recoil. Also, over/unders make shell cleanup a breeze.

 

[timber]

I use to shoot skeet l had two browning over and unders a 12 and a 20. Fired a lot of powder through them never had a problem. Use to shoot a few tournaments but I want a 98 out of a 100 shooter and didn’t see where I had the time to put in it to get there so gave it up and threw the money away on something else. I guess one thing I was good at was the whisky drinking after we got through shooting

 

[Tipmoose]

Not joking...there's a great gun in the classifieds.

FS KREIGHOFF MODEL 32 28" with subgauges tubeset SOLD

Krieghoff model 32 28" barrel with complete Briley tube set, Nasco aluminum case, K80 standard wood with 14.25" LOP using a 1" kick eez pad, adjustable butt plate, and comb has bluing loss mainly on one side under receiver some on sharp edges and muzzle end but not bad looking. The barrel is...

nchuntandfish.com

 

[wncdeerhunter]

I've got a 20 gauge Browning Citori O/U that I've had for close to 30 years (or more). Shot thousands of rounds through it sporting clays, skeet, trap, and bird hunting. I haven't babied it. Still my go to and not a minute's trouble.

 

[dobber]

Not joking...there's a great gun in the classifieds.

Be a royal pain getting anything like that here, i can't cross the border to buy a jug of milk let alone something like that

 

[QBD2]

Guy in the club was 3x(?) Navy champ and routinely placed way up there in US Opens. He shot/shoots 1100’s.

Seriously some of the ugliest guns you will ever see. Bondo, duct tape, and rattle can paint. But it’s humbling to watch…

 

[darkthirty]

Pretty much any browning citori or beretta. There are higher end guns but back when I shot so much, both my browning O/U’s were pretty much flawless. The citori XS guns are really nice. Go ahead and figure on tubes too because like in my case, I was A class in 20 and 28 but B class in 12. I simply shot the 28 and 20 better. I haven’t shot in almost 5 years but It’s fun and every once in a while, I’ll tell my wife, “I oughtta go shoot skeet this weekend” but I just don’t never get around to going.

 

[pattersonj11]

I shoot more clays and five stand but I do shoot skeet league as well.

the first thing is to figure out which gun fits you best. Cheap or expensive, if it don’t fit, it’s much harder to hit.

browning and beretta are hard to beat. Excellent value for what you get on either. I have only ever shot a couple of berettas that fit me. It seems like every browning I’ve ever picked up fit well.

I personally think the 725 Citoris are the best value in shotgunning right now. If they fit you, I would look no other. Some of them do have firing pin issues and if you get one that does, it should make itself known in short order. It’s a warranty fix at that point. Mine has needed them, and I know a couple of buddies that ran into it. Other than that, all of them have been flawless. In my normal group of shooters, none were shooting the 725s 2 years ago and now 4/5 are. Of those 4 guns, all have well over 10,000 rounds and probably closer to 25,000 for a couple of them.

I shoot with guys that have every make and model imaginable from stevens to Krieghoffs and Perazzis.

The 725 Brownings are the best value I know of in clay games. The high end guns may have a slight edge in longevity, but I don’t think they are anymore shootable. If maintained correctly and grease is used on the hinges....I think the brownings will handle similar longevity as well.

IF you are looking an auto loader, forget browning altogether. BERETTA blue guns are the ones. Remington 1100s are very touted by older shooters. They are fine...just keep some spare orings. Another one I am noticing now is the franchi affinity. They seem to be decent but they are not as plentiful as the others.

whatever you do...buy a gun built for shooting. Field o/u are going to beat you to death over time. Field autoloaders don’t have the same wear parts as the sporting models. There is a reason the sporting models cost more.....they do have different intervals.

I’d suggest a gun with an adjustable comb. You may never adjust it from the factory but it’s easier to leave it alone than to have one installed after the fact.

 

[Bailey Boat]

I'm a huge Browning fan, my Ultra XS has over 500,00 rounds through the tubes (Briley) with only 2 teardowns for new pins and springs. Lockup is still tight and it knows what to do. I also shoot a Lighting with tubes (again, Briley) that is actually older but doesn't have the round count the XS does. I recently got one of the Special Sporting Clays 3 barrel set (small gauge) that I intend on wearing out between now and death shooting Sporting Clays and 5 stand.
Other than that all of my hunting guns are also Browning O/U's.... So I say Browning...

 

[pattersonj11]

It seems short barrels used to be the choice for skeet.....but now days it seems long barrels have taken over. That is different for the first couple weeks.....but they are nice once you get used to it.

 

[Nana]

I have shot sporting clays for years. I love the swing of an over/under, but with a multiple day tournament, the weight and recoil become an issue. My go to gun has always been my Beretta 390 Sporting. Long enough barrel to get the job done, soft recoil and not too much weight.